Remember Me
by RougeDoll
Summary: EvelynRick. An ancient love story epic. Love was never simple, even in Ancient times. With Ardeth, Jonathan and Alex.


Phew! Bit of a long author's note here:

To begin with, a character list;_  
_

**Arcadius of Athens:** the King of Greece. Fighting the Persian's alongside the Spartan's in an attempt at uniting the city-state of Sparta with the rest of Greece. _Played by **Rick O'Connell**_  
**Nefertiri:** the Queen of Egypt. Married to her brother Ramesses II with whom she has a child_. __Played by **Evelyn O'Connell**_  
**Ramesses II: **the Pharaoh of Egypt, a cruel Pharaoh who looks only for personal gain and doesn't care much for either his wife or child.  
**King Leonidas: **the Spartan King and dear friend of Arcadius who leads the battle against the Persians_. __Played by **Ardeth Bey  
**_**Alexius of Egypt: **the Prince of Egypt; Nefertiri and Ramesses' son. _Played by **Alex O'Connell  
**_**Chariton:** a servant and good friend of Arcadius when he is older. _Played by **Jonathan Carnahan  
**_**King Demetrius: **the King of Greece and Arcadius' father. Featured in the prologue.  
**Pharaoh Seti I: **the Pharaoh of Egypt, Ramesses and Nefertiri's father. Featured in the prologue.

I have to apologise to any historians as I'm kind of forgetting historical continuity and merging the Greco-Persian wars of 499BC with the life of Nefertiri in the year 1290BC. As an avid history fan, even I cringe slightly at this but I hope everyone can forgive me and not let the continuity error cloud their judgement of the story :)

**Summary:** Love, battles, betrayal, tragedy and even murder. Love was never black and white, especially when the Queen of Egypt and the King of Greece fell in love. An ancient history love story-epic. Nefertiri/Arcadius, Evelyn/Rick

ENJOY! :)

RougeDoll

Remember Me

Thebes, 1290 BC

The heavily perfumed palace's great hall was thick with scented air which seemed to be emitting from each of the lit torches around the hall, Arcadius of Athens' head seemed to spin from the scent, his nose was stinging and his eyes watering yet he refused to excuse himself for fear of appearing rude. Arcadius and his father Demetrius, the King of Greece, had travelled from their homeland to seek an audience with Pharaoh Seti I in Thebes, Egypt. The two leaders were currently signing a pact which scribes had written for them, one in Greek and one in hieroglyphics, which stated the two countries would be allies; fighting for one another if a war arose.

Arcadius knew his father had been apprehensive about the signing of the treaty, in two different languages it could have meant conflicts or foul play however Pharaoh Seti had been more than accommodating with the Greek entourage and was a very hospitable host by going out of his way to be pleasant and kind towards them all. He'd heard rumours that Pharaoh Seti wasn't as particularly pleasant towards the peasants, and especially the slaves, in his country but Arcadius was willing to see past that so long as his father was happy.

The two leaders were halfway through the process of cross referencing and signing the treaty when a group of handmaidens walked into the room surrounding a girl who appeared to be a few years younger than himself. She walked gracefully and with a natural fluidity, which put a certain shame on the women around her, Arcadius could tell she was clearly royalty and he continued to watch her from across the room.

The girl was speaking Egyptian to the handmaiden directly beside her and Arcadius found himself mesmerised by her full lips which even when talking held a ghost of a smile. Through the haze of incandescence, Arcadius could see she had a long, straight nose as well as heavy lidded, almond eyes which were dark and inviting. He found he simply wanted to get lost within her eyes. There was something natural about her, the way she moved with such fluidity as though she were simply floating, he noticed that her hair was sleek and long rather than the coarse, deadened looks the women and men's wigs had. The way it fell in sheets without looking too heavy led Arcadius to believe that perhaps her hair was real, rather than a wig. And for some reason, Arcadius found this pleased him greatly.

Not only was Arcadius attracted to the girl, which he was, but he was also interested in her. The way she looked made Arcadius realise she was clearly one who didn't play by the rules, and he was enticed by her, wanting to learn if her personality was as interesting as her difference in looks.

Arcadius had been told that Egyptian women had an exotic appeal to them but were otherwise fairly plain, using heavy make up to enhance their beauty. However this girl didn't seem to fit that description at all, he'd seen many women back in Greece who wore much more make up than this girl and the finishing effect still wasn't as good. A small smile played across his lips; she was genuinely beautiful, he thought.

The heat as well as the perfumed air was clouding making his head slow and lazy. With a start he leapt to his seat from his chair as the woman approached, and stood awkwardly. Wearing his best, turquoise chiton meant the flash of sudden colour made many people look at Arcadius with puzzled eyes. He began massaging the back of his leg, pretending to have cramp and kept his head low whilst waiting for the the many eyes to slowly turn away. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the young woman still watching him with a bemused expression upon her face. Arcadius sighed embarrassedly.

"Daughter," Pharaoh Seti called in Egyptian as he held out his arms towards the girl who embraced him, smiling more broader still. The Pharaoh switched his dialect to Greek; "Demetrius, may I present my daughter, Princess Nefertiri."

"A pleasure," the Princess said, also in Greek which impressed Arcadius.

"Arcadius," Demetrius beckoned Arcadius over who rose from his chair slowly this time and walked from the edge of the great hall to the centre where a large table stood with the parchment sprawled across it. "May I introduce my son, Arcadius of Athens."

Arcadius inclined his head at Nefertiri who smiled in return, another warm, broad smile which lit up her face.

"Nefertiri, why don't you take Arcadius into the gardens?" Pharaoh suggested, still speaking in Greek for their benefit.

The Princess Nefertiri smiled at Arcadius before she led him out of the Great Hall and on to the large stone patio which overlooked the vast, exotic gardens. To the left a stone staircase led towards the gardens below and they descended in companionable silence. They walked past many large, wild plants which Arcadius looked at in awe before they reached the large pool which stood in the middle of the gardens. A small stone wall surrounded the basin of the pool and a stone carving of Horus, the God of the Sky, stood in the middle. The two companions stood at the basin's edge and watched the fish which swam through the water, occasionally darting in different directions.

"The gardens are truly beautiful." Arcadius said to the Princess.

"Thank you," Nefertiri replied. "I enjoy spending time in the gardens. My mother tended this garden herself before she died, I like to think a part of her is still in this garden."

"Your mother is in the afterlife?" Arcadius asked.

Nefertiri nodded; "She died whilst in child labour with my younger sister, who also died."

"I'm sorry," Arcadius said softly.

"It was a long time ago."

They lapsed into companionable silence once more as they perched upon the basin's edge, Nefertiri lightly ran her finger across the surface of the water and gave a soft smile. "When I was young, my father told me that the spirits of those we love look down upon us from heaven. Even within their afterlife they watch us sleeping at night and chase our bad dreams away. So when everyone else was asleep, I would sneak down into the gardens and wave up at the sky hoping my mother and sister could see me. I like to think they saw me." She gave a small shrug and looked up at him with her warm eyes. "I've never told anyone that before."

Arcadius smiled, thinking it better to not inquire into why she was telling him this. He didn't want to ruin the moment they were clearly experiencing.

"How old are you?" She asked, looking away from him at the slowly setting sun.

"I'll be nineteen this coming summer." Arcadius replied. "How old are you?"

"Sixteen." She replied before fixing him with a scrutinising look. "I've never seen someone who looks like you before."

"How do you mean?" He laughed.

"Well I don't see many people, only the ones who come to the palace as I'm not allowed out of the palace walls. But there's something about you which is different to them. Those of them that haven't completely shaven their heads all have black hair whereas yours is sandy brown colour. And your eyes, all the people around here seem to have brown eyes whereas yours are a mixture of blue and green." Nefertiri looked at the water which was reflecting the sun overhead. "Like this water here."

"Well you're very different to me, too." Arcadius chuckled.

"How so?" Nefertiri asked curiously.

"Women in Greece are not nearly as open for one thing," he smiled. "They would never talk about my hair and eyes so openly to me." Nefertiri blushed and apologised, making Arcadius' smile widen. "Don't apologise, I find it most endearing. Anyway, you're different because you have particularly dark features which are much more mysterious than other women I have seen before, and I must admit there is a certain graceful way you handle yourself which I wish some of the ladies within the Greek court would learn."

"Are there many ladies within your court?" Nefertiri asked and Arcadius was almost pleased to hear a note of sadness, or perhaps even jealousy within her voice.

"Not many," Arcadius said honestly. "None of them are nearly as beautiful as you are."

"I..." Nefertiri began, but Arcadius never learnt what else she had to say for at that moment a young man called from the balcony and Nefertiri stood. "That's my brother, Ramesses. He's even older than you, he's twenty one. Come, I believe he was saying we are to return inside now. It's probably safest, when darkness falls snakes may enter the gardens."

* * *

For the rest of the evening Arcadius wasn't able to speak to Nefertiri, a large feast took place in honour of the treaty between Egypt and Greece which lasted well into the night. As the night wore on, Arcadius ate heartily as well as drank a lot of wine which made him feel pleasantly drowsy. So when the Pharaoh claimed he was retiring to bed, Arcadius was pleased as it meant everyone would follow his example. A slave showed first Demetrius and then Arcadius to their ajoining, guest rooms and bowed to them deeply before departing. Arcadius' room was large, an open balcony doorway stood with a thin veil covering it which fluttered in the breeze and kept the room cool. The Prince stumbled across the room yawning, pulled off his clothing before falling upon the bed and fallingasleep instantly.

Arcadius had a very bizarre dream. He was stood in the Egyptian gardens at night and he could hear the hissing of snakes as they lurked in bushes and flowerbeds, waiting to attack him. Thinking the snakes probably couldn't swim, Arcadius climbed into the large pool and began wading into the middle where the statue (he hoped) would protect him. The basin of the pool steeped downwards until Arcadius was up to his neck in water with the fish darting past him, a strange calm overpowered him as the fish darted past him, occasionally stroking him with their fins and tails as they swam. From far away, he could hear the snakes still hissing but this time it sounded like they were whispering his name.

"Arcadiusss, Arcadiusss."

"No," Arcadius moaned. "Leave me."

"Arcadius," the whispering continued. "Wake up."

"Huh?" Arcadius suddenly opened his eyes and realised he wasn't in the pool being harassed by snakes or stroked by fish at all. Arcadius was lying in the Egyptian bed and in the darkness he could see a person was perched on the edge of his bed, shaking him awake and whispering his name into the darkness.

"Arcadius?" The voice asked and he recognised the figure at once as the Princess Nefertiri.

"Nefertiri, what are you doing here?" He asked, his voice thick with sleep. He pulled the bedsheets up to beneath his chin so only his head was poking out of the top.

"I couldn't sleep, I wanted to see you."

"Why?" He yawned widely.

"I ... I couldn't stop thinking about you." She admitted, and even through the darkness he could see a deep crimson blush spreading across her cheeks.

Arcadius smiled at her. "Is that so?"

"I heard my father talking to your father earlier, your father said you were returning to Greece tomorrow." Nefertiri said sadly to which Arcadius didn't know how to respond, surely since the pact was all signed she knew they'd be leaving soon?

"I'd hoped you'd stay longer," she admitted.

"I'm afraid my father needs to return to his country," Arcadius said.

"Of course," Nefertiri replied in an oddly chocked voice before it turned suddenly husky. "But in that case, you should know this..."

She lent downwards and kissed Arcadius soundly on the lips who was taken aback for a moment before returning the kiss deeply. He dropped the bed sheet he was holding up to his chin as he ran his hands through her hair which - he was pleased to find - was completely natural. Nefertiri ran her hands across Arcadius' taut chest and in an unspoken agreement they decided that, whether rash or not, they would quench their desires that night...

When it was over, Arcadius carefully laid Nefertiri beside him before leaning across and kissing away the tears which had forced themselves out of her eyes. He lay back down and pulled her towards him gently, placing her on his chest before holding her in his arms. She felt a mixture of things; confusion, pain, satisfaction and undoubtedly, pleasure.

"Arcadius?" She whispered into the night.

"Yes, 'tiri?" Arcadius asked, using a nickname which rolled off his tongue unexpectedly.

She sighed contentedly; "Nothing."

* * *

The following morning, Arcadius rose earlier and got ready quickly in the hope he could stop his father entering the room and thus exposing what had happened last night. It would, forevermore, be his and Nefertiri's secret. He knew, and he presumed Nefertiri knew, that if their night together did become common knowledge then Arcadius would be in grave danger. It was a crime punishable by death for a man to touch a Pharaoh's daughter; especially when she was still a maiden and not yet married. Arcadius didn't like to think what might happen if the Pharaoh found out it went beyond touching, _much_ beyond touching.

Arcadius left the room and the still slumbering Princess with a bliss which filled his very core, he wasn't entirely sure what had happened last night, nor what had come over him or the Princess but he was glad it had. Their night of passion would always stay with him, even if Nefertiri herself could not remain by Arcadius' side. Arcadius met his father down within the Great Hall who was ready to leave, a slave from the kitchen was was giving him a basket of food supplies which he thanked the slave greatly for.

"Ah Arcadius," King Demetrius smiled at his son. "I spoke to the Pharaoh last night and warned him we would be leaving early the next morning so if you're ready to leave, we can set off back for Greece promptly."

"I am ready father," Arcadius said after un-sticking his throat.

"Good," King Demetrius smiled before leading the way out of the palace and to where their carriage awaited outside. Demetrius entered the carriage first and Arcadius was about to step in but couldn't resist glancing at the balcony which was connected to the guest room he'd inhabited the night before. He half expected to see Nefertiri stood there but then scolded himself for such a foolish fantasy, she would still be sleeping at this early hour.

With a sigh he pulled himself into the carriage and settled into his seat, his body crumpled slightly under the weight of what he was possibly leaving. King Demetrius called for the carriage to begin it's journey and it pulled away from the palace at a steady pace. Arcadius didn't look back.


End file.
